Title: キスからはじめるエゴイズム
Developer: Satsuki
Release Date: 28th October 2022
Age Rating: 18+
Length: ~5 Hours
Links: Official Website, VNDB
Honda Hajime used to be the number one host in the city but after being betrayed by one of his customers all he’s been left with is a huge amount of debt and a distrust of women. He manages to just about make ends meet but lives a much quieter life nowadays. All of this changes when he almost hits a girl with his motorbike. It later transpires that this is no normal girl – she’s in fact the newest model of sex robot “Sexroid E-5 (Erect Type 5)” from the famous company ErectElectronics. She had been sent out to meet her “tester” but, upon learning this guy was a disgusting pervert, ran away from her duty.
With the promise of a high payment at the end of the two week testing period, E-5 asks Hajime to be her new tester as he seems a bit more trustworthy. Now begins the odd love story between a sex robot who dislikes the act, and her tester who doesn’t want to be in a relationship.
My Thoughts
While pre-ordering a game from a new brand can be a little risky, I thought that the premise of KissEgo had some promise, alongside the fact it was a single heroine game making it a fairly inexpensive title. This made me feel it was worth the chance so it got tossed into the cart for October. Is it worth taking a look at?
Despite seemingly simple, low-price, single heroine games seem to be a difficult thing for the eroge industry to get right. I think KissEgo manages to break free of many problems the genre has – there’s a complete story and its not a series plus it does feel like a satisfactory level of content for the price.
The story’s set-up is pretty unique in the details – giving the protagonist an interesting past that explain why he doesn’t jump ontop of the sex robot the second she offers him the testing opportunity for example lmao. E-5 (or Ego as she’s known – I see what they did there) definitely had a lot of potential with the fact she’s at odds with her reason for existance – with her pondering over whether this “flaw” is her “ego” or just a “bug”.
However, I was a little let-down when the game decides to force the H scenes by setting up the scenario that the only fuel Ego requires is…uh…bodily fluids. I mean essentialy forcing the H scenes did lead to the first couple of scenes being quite fun to read with a lot of banter but it also means that a significant amount of the romantic development is within the 6 H scenes.
The actual relationship building (outside of the H) is a slow burn and nuanced. This is very much a romantic story and the ending of the game, while a little cliche, is very satisfying to read. I was actually pretty happy with the plot overall and think it was fine for the type of game this is.
As far as the two main leads, they’re both pretty likable. I liked that Hajime had some depth and personality which made him feel like a fully fleshed character. Ego is also great, not like your more typical super submissive robot heroine which was a refreshing change.
The artwork by Kiba Satoshi was overall good and there was a decent number of CGs considering the length of the game. Given the last game I played with this artist was Colorful Aquarium, I’d say his style has definitely changed over the years.
With 14 BGM tracks & 2 vocal songs, there was an okay amount of music in the game. I was a little disappointed that a lot of the BGM tracks were remixes of the vocal songs though. That being said, I love track 10 “愛があろうとなかろうと” – it’s just super relaxing and chill to have playing in the background.
Final Thoughts
My Score: 7/10
For a first release, KissEgo is simply a solid attempt with an interesting set-up and conclusive plot. I like that the game had a more mature vibe to it with an adult protagonist and the romance was pretty decent. I’m indecisive on my feelings about the H scene placement but it doesn’t stop this being a fun little game.
I’d recommend this title if you’re interested in Ego or the story set-up. I’m happy that this game seems to have done well with Japanese fans as well and hope to see more from Satsuki in the future!
Thanks for reading~
Zettai Renai! 